Boundaries
by madeleine68
Summary: What if it was Elliot who went undercover as a prison guard with Olivia instead of Fin during "Undercover?" THE LAST CHAPTER IS UP!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: If you've seen them on the show, they belong to Dick Wolf, not me. Maybe someday he and I will work something out . . . **

**What if it was Elliot who went undercover at Sealview with Olivia instead of Fin?**

"You can't let her do this," insisted Elliot. "It's dangerous."

Captain Cragen shrugged. "You know how stubborn Olivia is. Elliot, we'll cover our bases. Fin is going to go undercover as a prison guard. He'll look out for her."

"No," said Elliot suddenly.

"Elliot, this isn't your decision."

"No. Let _me _go undercover with her."

The captain peered at him more closely. "Elliot, are you sure you'll be able to handle it?"

He nodded enthusiastically.

"Elliot, you're going to be there for backup, nothing more. In that prison, you're going to see a lot of things you're going to want to stop, but you can't react. Ever. You need to keep your cover at all times, even if it means letting someone else do something you know is wrong."

"I can handle it."

He still looked a bit sceptical, but finally the captain nodded his consent. "All right, Elliot. I'll tell her."

* * *

"Kathy," said Elliot that night, lying in bed beside his wife. "I have something to tell you."

"Mmm?" she mumbled sleepily. "What is it?"

He took a deep breath. It was now or never. "I'm going undercover at Sealview. I'm going to be a prison guard."

Kathy sat up straight in bed, now wide awake. "_Why_?"

"Someone's been raping the inmates, Kath. We need to find out who."

"_We_?" Kathy's tone was laced with suspicion. "What are you not telling me?"

He sighed. "Olivia's going undercover as an inmate."

Kathy raised her eyebrows. "For how long?"

"I don't know," he answered. "Hopefully not too long."

With a twinge of bitterness in her voice, she conceded. "You be careful."

Well. That was easy. "I will be."

* * *

They arrived at Sealview three days later. A feeling of apprehension washed over Olivia as she followed the other inmates off the bus. Elliot was going to be there, which made her feel slightly more comfortable, but she knew they would be unable to interact. Seeming too close would blow both their covers and jeopardize the operation.

The guards ordered the women to take off their clothes and shower. This was the most humiliating thing thus far, but Olivia knew this was just the beginning. If "real" prisoners could do it, so could and would she. This was indignity number one, but she knew there would be more to come.

She faced the wall and started to slowly undress. It wasn't that she was embarrassed about or uncomfortable with her body, but she'd always been a modest person. The male guards raked their eyes hungrily over the exposed bodies getting into the shower and Olivia swallowed her protests. She knew in her heart that this was wrong, but as George Huang had told her, she simply could not react. It would blow her cover.

So she tried to cover her body with her hands as she climbed into the shower, shivering as she felt the cold water cascade over her body.

When they were done showering, the women dressed in their orange prison jumpsuits then the guards gave them a full body search. Olivia almost jumped when she saw that Elliot was one of the guards who were to search them, and shook her head slightly at him when he reflexively moved close to her. He seemed to catch himself and his eyes hardened.

One of the guards told Olivia to spread her legs. Indignity number two, but out of moral instinct, she protested, "Wait. Shouldn't a woman be doing this?"

"Shut up," ordered the guard dismissively. She winced as he ran his hands up and down her legs and thighs, squeezing her butt with one hand. "Someone's been working out," he leered.

Olivia clenched her fists and whirled around, grabbing the guard in the police hold that she used on suspects daily. "Don't you touch me like that!" she hissed.

Suddenly, she felt a sharp object ram into her arm and fell to the ground, crying out clutching her elbow in pain. _Oh, my God. _Her eyes widened as she realized that she just blew her cover. Normal, non-police officer inmates did not try to restrain prison guards, no matter what they did.

Her elbow was bleeding where the officer had hit her with his night stick. She was used to pain, but this pain was different than the kind of pain she'd experienced as a detective. Sure, sometimes a suspect would snap and hit her; she'd been shot at and attacked more times than she could count. She'd looked death in the eye without blinking and lived to tell the tale. But this – and to add insult to injury, when she looked up into the eyes of the officer who'd struck her, she saw that it was Elliot.

**Do you think Elliot and Olivia will be able to cope with the assignment? Will Elliot be able to numb his protective instincts in the interests of keeping their cover? Review for chapter two to find out!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: If you've seen them on the show, they belong to Dick Wolf, not me. Maybe someday he and I will work something out . . . **

**I apologize if I took a bit of poetic license and changed some of the circumstances from the actual episode. I tried to use as much of the dialogue as possible.**

A corrections officer took Olivia to the nurse to make sure her arm was all right, but Elliot suddenly felt nauseous. He couldn't shake the uneasy feeling that enveloped him. He had hit Olivia. _He _had hit Olivia. He had _hit _Olivia. He had hit_ Olivia. _The words kept replaying in his mind like a broken record and he felt like he was going to faint from hopelessness and shame. He had hurt Liv. He was here to make sure she _didn't _get hurt, not to hurt her. Even though it was just for his cover, he couldn't let it go.

"Hey," said Officer Parker approvingly, giving him a light punch on the shoulder. "Not bad for your first day on the job."

If this was how it was going to be every day, he knew he wouldn't last a week.

* * *

Olivia lay on a dingy mattress in her 8x10 cell that night, tossing and turning as she tried to sleep. She couldn't imagine how some people did this for months – years, even. Besides the lack of any privacy whatsoever, there were the brutal, sadistic guards who, although permitted by law to strike an inmate to force compliance, seemed to be overstepping their boundaries in more ways than one. Olivia quickly learned that the corrections officers could do pretty much whatever they likes and the prisoners were helpless to stop them. They would hit the women or touch them in ways Olivia knew they shouldn't in plain view of others, and no one did a thing to stop it. And she, the powerful, fearless, police officer, Olivia Benson, couldn't do anything either. When Captain Cragen had asked her if she had any idea what she was getting herself into, she said she didn't care, but now she truly realized how powerless she was. It scared her to think that she was just another little fish in an ocean of sharks.

So she lay in her cell, listening as other women cried out in their sleep, listening to the soft sobbing in the cell adjacent to hers.

* * *

The next morning, the women were allowed outside for an hour of recreation. To Olivia, it felt like recess time in elementary school. Except the prison guards wouldn't have lasted a day as teachers. The thought brought a smile to her lips.

Feeling a sudden, inexplicable feeling of exposure under the bright sun and the eyes of the corrections officers and inmates, Olivia wrapped her arms around herself and continued to meander around the courtyard, keeping a vigilant eye on the guard. It interested her to see that every so often, an officer would inconspicuously take an inmate aside and lead them back toward the prison. At first, she thought this was suspicious, but then she realized that she was just overreacting. All the guards couldn't be raping all these women all the time. She wondered what was going on. Maybe they were exchanging drugs.

A moment later, she glanced up to find the corrections officer who'd seen her get hurt yesterday – Officer Parker – coming over to her, Elliot by his side. She almost smiled at the sight of her partner, wearing such a hardened look on his face, but she knew him too well and saw right through it. In his eyes, she could read contrition and an apology that she didn't need. It hurt that he had hit her, but only physically. She knew it wasn't the real Elliot. Her partner would never hurt her and the guilt from doing so yesterday was probably eating him alive.

"You feeling better today?" asked Officer Parker causally.

"Peachy," replied Olivia sardonically, not thinking about the potential ramifications of such a retort. As a cop, she'd always used sarcasm, and it would be a hard habit to break.

The guard raised his eyebrows. "'Yes, thank you, CO,' is the correct response."

Swallowing her pride for the moment, Olivia made the decision right then to pick her battles. If she fought tooth and nail for every little indignity, she'd have little time to do anything else, and she didn't even want to think about what her punishment would be. Getting put in solitary confinement for a week would hardly help Risa Tyler; if anything, it would jeopardize her purpose for being here to begin with. So she did as she was told, biting down on her lower lip. "Yes, thank you, CO."

He gave her a facetious stare. "Now apologize to Officer Randall." That was Elliot's undercover name.

Olivia's eyes widened in confusion and disbelief. "For _what_?"

"You got blood on his shoes," answered Officer Parker calmly.

"He hit me," protested Olivia in as measured a tone as she could muster.

"Excuse me?"

She could see the rage boiling beneath Elliot's calm exterior, the subtleties that would only be visible to someone who knew him as well as she did. The way his hands curled into fists, the way his jaw clenched, and she knew that this was killing him inside. Her pride was important to her and he knew that. He didn't want to humiliate her any further.

Afraid that Elliot might blow their cover and step in, saying that he didn't need an apology or something, she bit back her dignity, rationalizing that it was just Elliot, after all. "I'm sorry for getting blood on your shoes. It won't happen again."

She saw his hands unclench but he didn't reply. He just cast her an apologetic glance as he followed Officer Parker away.

* * *

Elliot hated seeing Olivia like this. She was his partner and best friend, but he'd always seen her in positions of power. She was the strongest person he knew and she'd dealt with more crap in her life than anyone should ever have to. But now . . . she was humiliated, vulnerable. It pained him when the guards taunted the inmates, struck them with more force than necessary, jeered at them, made inappropriate sexual comments. He wanted to smack Officer Parker for calling Olivia "honey" and "sweet cheeks." He wanted to punch the guard's lights out when he saw him grabbing Olivia's butt and squeezing, and the worst thing was, neither of them could do anything about it. They were both powerless in that moment. But still, it made Elliot's blood boil. Olivia was a police officer, not some whorehouse plaything.

He wanted a moment alone with her more than anything, a moment in which he could apologize, a moment in which she would assure him that there were no hard feelings between them. He was going to find that moment.

**Will Elliot be able to talk to Olivia alone? Will they get caught and have their cover blown? How will they cope? Review for chapter three to find out!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: If you've seen them on the show, they belong to Dick Wolf, not me. Maybe someday he and I will work something out . . . **

Olivia barely saw Elliot over the next two weeks, although she saw more of Officer Parker than she cared to. He went out of his way to make life difficult for her, but she gritted her teeth and learned to deal with it.

She learned from the other inmates that "Officer Randall" had been transferred to a different cell block. In some ways, that made being at Sealview all less bearable, but it was also somewhat of a relief. Elliot was always so protective of her that she knew he wouldn't have been to hold out much longer, watching his partner suffer the indignities of prison.

One day, she was eating rubbery cold eggs for breakfast when she felt a tug on her arm and looked up. To her surprise, Elliot was towering over her. "You're coming with me," he growled loudly, yanking her up by her arm.

Olivia suppressed her smile, hoping no one was taking much notice of them. Elliot's performance was unconvincing at best. "What the hell are you doing?" she hissed in his ear.

"Just come," he hissed back.

She let him drag her out of the room and down the hallway to a deserted corridor, an area of the prison in which she'd never been before. Although she was glad to see him, she was also worried that someone would see them together, and to be prudent, they had to make this quick.

Glancing around to make sure no one was near, Elliot pulled Olivia into a hug. She stared at him in surprise. They generally didn't touch each other except when absolutely necessary, and they'd _never_ hugged before. But after spending two weeks away from everyone who cared about her, feeling truly alone, she welcomed the physical contact and leaned into Elliot, resting her head on his shoulder. This show of affection was unusual for both of them, but then, so were the circumstances.

Finally they broke apart. "What's the matter?" asked Olivia.

"Nothing," said Elliot with a sigh. "Everything's fine. I just wanted to say – Liv, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."

"I know," she interrupted. "I know, I know, I know. It's part of the game, Elliot. I can deal with it. I'm okay. I know it isn't real."

"I would never purposefully try to hurt you," he told her.

"I know," she assured him. "No hard feelings."

Suddenly, they heard footsteps approaching and jumped away from each other at the sound of Officer Parker's rough voice. "Hey, Randall, what are you doing?"

He glanced at Olivia, who gave him an encouraging nod. Biting back the disgust that gathered at the base of his throat, he echoed something he'd heard the officers say many times before. "Playing a game with that fish we tango with."

His face turned green and he grimaced as he said the words. Olivia knew it was hurting him to speak of her this way and reached out to grasp his hand, giving it a comforting squeeze. "It's okay," she murmured.

"Good for you!" Officer Parker called back approvingly, and Elliot cringed. He wanted to smack the smug bastard into oblivion.

The entire prison was on lockdown because of a potentially deadly virus that everyone needed to be vaccinated against. Olivia was sitting with some of the other inmates in the common area when Officer Parker approached her. Elliot was nowhere to be seen. "Get up fish," he ordered her with a smirk. "You're coming with me."

Alarm bells were going off in Olivia's head. "What for, CO?"

He gave a humourless chuckle. "For whatever I say. Now get up."

Trying desperately to avoid the inevitable, she said, "Hold on. I didn't get my shot yet."

"You'll get one later," he said dismissively. "Maybe even two pricks."

He grabbed her arm, but Olivia pulled away, feeling more helpless and afraid in that moment than she'd felt in her entire life but trying not to show it. This was what Captain Cragen had meant about her not knowing what she was getting herself into. He'd been right.

In a final act of desperation, she said, "We have a right to know what's going on!"

Pretty soon, everyone else had followed her example and there was a full-blown riot in the middle of the room. Guards burst in, knocking inmates to the ground with their batons. Parker slammed her into the table and held her down, obviously furious that he hadn't been able to get her alone, but she didn't care. At least she was safe.

Captain Lowell Harris swaggered toward them and Olivia glanced at him, relief flooding through her body. Harris was one of the good guys, if there were any good guys in this prison. He'd been the one to take her to the infirmary when she'd been hurt on her first day and he never made any unwanted sexual advances like most of the other men. He was going to protect her.

"Who started this?" he asked.

Fury still etched into his features, Parker yanked Olivia up, still holding her hands behind her back. "This one."

"Okay," said Harris calmly, taking hold of her by the wrists. "Looks like you're going to the hole."

Trying to calm her shallow breathing, Olivia followed him out the door.

**If you've seen**_** Undercover**_**, you probably know what's going to happen next. But will Elliot get there in time? Review for chapter four and you'll see!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: If you've seen them on the show, they belong to Dick Wolf, not me. Maybe someday he and I will work something out . . . **

**I played with the events of the episode a little and changed their order. Hope you don't mind.**

Olivia had a bad feeling when Harris led her down a flight of stairs a block over from where she was supposed to be. Panic setting in, she said, trying to calm her nerves, "The hole is over in C block. What are we doing down here?"

"Shut up," snarled Harris.

In that moment, Olivia's suspicions were confirmed and she knew she had to help herself right now, before it was too late. Swallowing her pride, she said quickly, "Captain, I'm sorry. I freaked because of the outbreak. I apologize." This was her last chance. She knew what came next and had to prevent it from happening to hear. _Please, let me go, _she begged silently.

"Oh, we're way past apologies now," Harris told her, a malevolent expression on his face. "Now shut up and do what you're told."

Olivia's eyes scanned the dank room and came upon a dingy mattress in the corner. That was when she knew she was going to become a victim. But still, she couldn't let him see her fear. She _wouldn't_. But her elevated heart rate and shallow breaths were doing just the opposite.

"What do you want?" she managed.

"What every guy wants," he replied. "And you're gonna give it to me." He grabbed her chin and squeezed tightly, smirking at the terrified look in Olivia's eyes.

She desperately tried to think of a way out of this, but her brain was in panic mode and she found none. So there she was, fearless, unflappable, strong Olivia Benson, the toughest cop you'd ever meet, screaming and pleading for him not to rape her. She tried to run, but he was faster. She tried to fight back, but he was stronger. She tried to hide, but he found her. Soon Badass Benson was reduced to a sobbing mess, begging him in vain not to hurt her as he pressed his lips roughly to hers, cuffed her wrists together, threw her into the wall, hit her over and over.

Tears ran down her face as she cried. Olivia was the most terrified she'd ever been in her life. She was going to become her mother. He was going to rape her and there would be nothing she could do about it. She was no longer a brave, tough cop. She was powerless. Just another victim.

Elliot entered the common area with the other guards and it struck him that he could take advantage of the situation and steal another moment with Olivia. No one would be paying any attention to them; the riot was too great. So he glanced around the room for his partner, but panicked when he didn't see her.

Trying to calm his pounding heart, he rationalized that in the sea of a thousand inmates, he might have just lost sight of her. So he walked over to her cellmate, Shawna. "Where's Kat?" he asked, trying to disguise the alarm in his voice.

"She's busy," said Shawna with a smirk. "But I'm available."

Elliot's eyes widened when he realized what that meant. He yanked Shawna to her feet with more force than necessary. "Take me where you go where there aren't any cameras."

Olivia was backed against the door, gagging as Harris pulled down his pants. "Bite me and you're dead," he growled, and she knew she was helpless. She was going to have to do what he said if she wanted to survive.

"No, no, no," she begged, but she knew it was futile. She closed her eyes as tears streaked down her cheeks.

Suddenly Elliot burst into the room, his gun pointed right at Harris. "Let her go now!" he screamed, running toward them at the speed of light.

"Get the hell out of here!" Harris shouted.

"Police!" yelled Elliot frantically, though he knew that his own horror and rage didn't even compare to the terror that must be running through his partner's mind right now. "Move away from her! Move away!"

"She was trying to escape!" cried Harris.

"And you had to drop your pants to stop her? You're under arrest for the rape of Ashley Tyler and the attempted murder of a police officer."

Olivia was gasping for air, unable to comprehend what had just happened. Elliot was there. He'd saved her. Just like her knight in shining armour. But then she remembered something he'd said long ago – "I can't always be looking over my shoulder, making sure you're okay. You need to be able to do your job and not wait for me to come to the rescue."

Her face burned in shame. That was exactly what was happening now and she squeezed her eyes shut in abject humiliation.

She heard a grunt and her eyes snapped open. "Elliot!" she shrieked. "Don't!"

Elliot had Harris on the ground. He was on top of him, beating him with his fists, snarling, "How do you like it, huh? How do you like it? Son of a bitch, I'm going to kill you!"

Although she really didn't mind seeing Harris get what he deserved, she didn't want Elliot to have to be the one to ride in like her knight in shining armour and save her. And she knew Elliot would really kill him, too. She didn't want Elliot in trouble.

Jumping to her feet, she pulled her partner off Harris. It was just like at the precinct, when Elliot would start whaling on a perp and Olivia would have to pull him away.

Seeming to regain some semblance of self-control, Elliot stood up and surveyed his handiwork. Harris had a swollen black eye and a cut on his left cheek. Elliot cuffed the officer's hands behind his back then turned to Olivia. She saw the tears in his eyes when he said, "Liv, are you okay?"

_Do I look like I'm okay? _she didn't say. Instead, she nodded. "Yeah."

She got to her feet and followed Elliot as he led Harris out the door.

**Will the incident create a rift between Elliot and Olivia or will it bring them closer? How will they deal with the aftermath? Review for chapter five and find out!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: If you've seen them on the show, they belong to Dick Wolf, not me. Maybe someday he and I will work something out . . . **

Olivia sat in the squad room, writing out her report of what happened. At the desk next to hers, Elliot was doing the same. Every attempt he'd made at conversation that been abruptly shut down and eventually, he gave up. Olivia obviously didn't want to talk. When she was ready, she would come to him. Pushing her to talk before she reached that point wouldn't help anybody and would only make Olivia angrier.

Elliot understood that Olivia might be embarrassed around him because he'd seen her in such a vulnerable position. He wanted to tell her that it wasn't her fault, but he couldn't find the words. He wanted to tell her how sorry he was for letting it happen, but his throat constricted every time he opened his mouth to speak. He hated how she always holed everything up inside her, afraid to let anyone in. All he wanted to do was hug her and reassure her that everything was going to be all right.

But then, he couldn't say that, because he didn't know if it was true.

Olivia wasn't angry at Elliot. She was angry at herself. For letting herself be weak, for not stopping him, for forcing Elliot into a bad position. She was humiliated that he had seen her like that and couldn't even bear to look him in the eyes, afraid of the regret she knew she'd see written in them. Then something occurred to her. "Elliot?"

His head snapped up in earnest. "Yes?"

"What are you writing in your report?"

He looked at her like she was crazy. "Uh, what happened?" He voiced it as a question.

"No," she said sharply, getting up and facing him, a look of set determination on her face. "You aren't going to tell _anyone _what happened in the basement. Not a word. Tell them he tried to attack me. That's it."

"Liv," he protested. "There's nothing to be ashamed of. You tell victims every day to report the crime. How hypocritical –"

"Shut up," she snapped. "I know what I'm doing."

Hurt flashing across his face, Elliot crumpled up his paper and started over.

Olivia sighed. She wasn't angry at Elliot and it wasn't fair for her to take out her self-hatred on him. He was only trying to help. But still she said, "Don't tell them you 'saved' me. I can take care of myself, Elliot. I don't need you."

It hurt him to hear her say that and he didn't understand. "I know you can, Liv, but we're partners. Partners watch each other's backs."

With pure contempt in her voice, Olivia bit out, "You can't always be looking over your shoulder, making sure I'm okay. I need to be able to do my job and not wait for you to come to my rescue."

Elliot winced at her words. She was parroting back something he'd said to her years ago, something that he wished with all his heart he could take back now. It was two years ago; he hadn't even thought she'd remember. It hadn't meant anything to him, but obviously it had meant a lot to her. He hadn't known. "I was wrong to say that, Liv. I was angry."

"Why? It's true."

His heart went out to her in that moment. "No, Liv," he said emphatically. "It's not. You're the best cop I know. This wasn't your fault."

She tossed her head. "Oh, please. Don't treat me like a victim, Elliot."

_But, Liv, _he didn't say. _That's what you ate_.

But she wasn't. Not to him. To him, she would always be courageous Olivia Benson, who'd taken the punches that life had thrown her with dignity and grace and came out all the better for it.

"Olivia," said Elliot quietly. "I won't tell anyone what happened unless you tell me I can. But how many victims have you told to make a report so they can put their rapists behind bars? You know more than anyone that rape is a crime of violence and it's never your fault." He knew she needed to learn to trust him again and not telling, even though he disagreed with it, was the right thing to do in this case.

"Elliot," she bit out. "Do me a favour."

"Yes?"

"Shut up."

They finished their reports in silence. Elliot, although she was pushing him away, offered to stay with her. Olivia just shook her head. "Go home," she said quietly. "Hug your kids, kiss your wife." _Take advantage of the family you have that I never will._ She didn't speak the words, but Elliot heard them all the same, and flinched. He was her family, the whole squad was, and both of them knew it.

Casting one last apprehensive glance over his shoulder, Elliot pulled on his jacket and walked out of the squad room. "See you tomorrow, Liv."

She didn't respond, just laid her head in her hands and sighed deeply as his footsteps faded away.

Finally, she was alone, in the one place she had always felt safe. It was funny that she should feel safe here. At the precinct, they'd had their share of people gunned down, exploding pizza boxes, kids who went after their parents with scissors. More scumbags had walked these halls than any other area of New York. She'd even been attacked herself in this precinct. Yet she still felt safer here than anywhere else.

Olivia just wanted to be by herself tonight, but she didn't want to go back to her apartment. It was too empty, too bleak, and it was just easier to stay here. Over the last month, she'd spent every single minute of every single day in plain view of others – even when she used the washroom. Now, privacy was all she wanted.

She mounted the stairs to the crib and lay her head down on a bed. They weren't particularly comfortable, but after the mattresses on which she'd slept at Sealview, they felt like paradise.

But she tossed and turned for hours in the hard bed, unable to get to sleep. Memories flashed through her mind, leaving her no peace.

. . . _Gitano, a gun held to Elliot's head . . . _

_. . . Alex, laying on the ground, a bullet hole through her arm, dead – or so Olivia had thought . . ._

_. . . Harris, his pants balled around his ankles . . ._

She closed her eyes and willed the thoughts away.

It was midnight when Elliot got home. Being careful not to make any noise so as not to wake his family, he mounted the steps to the second floor. God, it felt so good to be home. He'd missed Kathy. He'd especially missed his children. He hadn't seen them in a month.

He opened the door to the room Kathleen and Elizabeth shared. He looked down at his sleeping daughters, so peaceful in their slumber. They were so beautiful and he swelled with pride as only a father could. He advanced gingerly, trying not to make any sound whatsoever. He planted a kiss on Kathleen's forehead and she didn't stir. He did the same to Elizabeth and then left, closing the door gently.

He did the same with Dickie and Maureen before going to his own bedroom. He opened the door and was surprised when his wife sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes at the light that streamed into the room. Her eyes widened in joyful surprise. "Elliot!"

He'd missed her so much. Climbing onto the bed next to Kathy, he wrapped his arms around her and gave her a long kiss.

After a moment, Kathy pulled back. She gave Elliot a long look and then a sad smile. "You've changed." She waited a moment, then added, "I missed you."

"Missed you too," he mumbled. Right now, he really wanted to be with Olivia, but this was the next best thing and he'd seize the chance while it remained.

Kathy clearly noticed the sadness in his eyes because she wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him another peck on the lips. Then she leaned back against the headboard of the bed. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Sighing, he shook his head.

"How's Olivia?" asked Kathy gently.

Elliot groaned. "Let's not talk about her."

"That bad, huh?" she sympathized.

He just nodded and rolled onto his side. He wasn't going to break Olivia's confidence and tell his wife anything about what had happened, though it haunted his consciousness and he knew it would haunt his dreams as well.

Vaguely, he remembered something Olivia had said to him years ago. "She thinks I'm shutting her out," he'd complained about Kathy.

Olivia had given him a sharp, unsympathetic look. "You are. If you're not careful, you'll ruin the best thing you ever had."

And Olivia, being who she was, would never want to come between Elliot and his wife. She understood how important family was and would never want to break Elliot's up.

So he tried to push his partner from his mind and enjoy his wife's presence, though the uneasy feeling lingered.

**Will Elliot and Olivia be able to make up or is their partnership over forever? Review to find out in chapter six!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: If you've seen them on the show, they belong to Dick Wolf, not me. Maybe someday he and I will work something out . . . **

**This is the last chapter of this story. I hope you enjoy it.**

"_Help me! Help me!" she screams, no longer the tough cop she's been for the last nine years. Her dignity is gone and she's just another victim._

_He smacks her hard across the face and she clutches my burning cheek. He grabs her and pushes her against the door. She crumples to the floor, tears streaming down her cheeks, "Shut up!" he yells at her and she flinches, but she's hysterical._

"_No! No! Let go of me!" she screams desperately._

_He pulls down his pants and gives her an arrogant smirk, knowing that he's won this round. "Bite me," he growls, "and you're dead."_

Olivia woke up drenched in a cold sweat. She'd awoken to the sound of a faraway scream and it took her a moment to realize it had been her own.

Burying her head in her pillow, she willed herself not to cry. She was back to being the fearless, street-smart cop she'd been for nine years. She wasn't a victim. She wasn't going to cry.

But try as she might, she couldn't stop the tears from running down her cheeks.

Elliot arrived at the precinct at 7:00 in the morning. Noticing that Olivia's jacket was still draped over her chair, he sighed. She hadn't gone home last night. He'd known she wouldn't, but it bothered him anyway.

Taking his own coat off and hanging it up, he climbed the stairs to the crib to check on Olivia.

He gasped at the sight that awaited him. Olivia was curled up in a ball on a bed, clutching her knees to her chest, rocking back and forth and sobbing quietly. That was twice in two days that he'd seen his strong partner cry.

She didn't notice him enter the room, nor did she notice as he climbed onto the bed and gently put a hand on her back. Olivia flinched, her body tensed, and her eyes widened at the physical contact. His hand was right over one of the bruises Lowell Harris had given her yesterday and it had not only startled her but it had also hurt.

She glanced up at him and buried her head in shame as she realized it was just Elliot. "I'm sorry," she whimpered.

"It's okay, Liv," he said quietly, rubbing gentle circles into her back. Her body tensed at first and she shied away from him, but then relaxed as she reminded herself that it was Elliot touching her, her partner and her best friend. He wasn't going to hurt her. He never had and never would. He would rather die than lay a hand on her.

She didn't know how long they remained like that for. It could have been minutes or it could have been hours. But she was at the precinct with her best friend, comfortable and safe.

She rolled over to face Elliot. "I'm sorry, Elliot," she whispered.

"It's not your fault."

"That's not what I meant."

"I know."

"I didn't mean to take it out on you, El. It's not your fault either. Don't blame yourself."

"Don't blame _your_self either."

She smiled and ducked her head. He knew her too well.

"And Liv?" She looked back up at him and he stared into her eyes as he added, "I forgive you. Will you forgive me?"

Her face softened. "I already have."

They were friends again.

**So, that's the end of this story. I hope you liked it. Please review; they always make my day/**


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